click below
click below
Normal Size Small Size show me how
27 ES Vocab
Earth Science 4th Quarter
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| electromagnetic spectrum | All types of electromagnetic radiation arranged according to wavelength and frequency. |
| interferometry | Process that links separate telescopes so they act as one telescope, producing more detailed images as the distance between them increases. |
| reflecting telescope | Uses mirrors to focus visible light. |
| refracting telescope | Uses lenses to focus visible light |
| albedo | Percentage of sunlight that is reflected by the surface of a planet or a satellite, such as the Moon. |
| ejecta | Material that falls back to the lunar surface after being blasted out by the impact of space object. |
| highland | Light-colored, mountainous, heavily cratered area of the Moon, composed mostly of lunar breccias. |
| impact crater | Crater formed when space material impacted on Moon's surface. |
| maria | Dark-colored, smooth plains on the Moon surface. |
| ray | Long trail of ejecta that radiates outward from a Moon crater |
| regolith | Layer of loose, ground-up rock on the lunar surface. |
| rille | Valleylike structure that meanders across some regions of the Moon's maria |
| apogee | Farthest point in the Moon's elliptical orbit to Earth. |
| ecliptic plane | Plane of Earth's orbit around the Sun. |
| equinox | Time of year during which Earth's axis is at 90 degrees angle to the Sun; both hemispheres receive exactly 12hrs of sunlight and the Sun is directly overhead at the equator. |
| lunar eclipse | When Earth passes between the Sun and the Moon, and Earth's shadow falls on the Moon; occurs only during a full moon. |
| perigee | Closest point in the Moon's elliptical orbit to Earth. |
| solar eclipse | When the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun and the Moon casts a shadow on Earth, blocking Earth's view of the Sun; can be partial or total. |
| solstice | Period when the Sun is overhead at its farthest distance either north or south of the equator. |
| synchronous rotation | The state at which the Moon's orbital and rotational periods are equal. |